Cebuano artist Walter Vestil once again proves that his roots are his greatest muse. On Oct. 5, 2025, he showcased his latest oil-on-linen piece, “Tales of the Tide,” at a special exhibit held inside his own Melon Atelier tattoo studio in Carcar City.
Measuring 231 by 130 centimeters, the commissioned painting immerses viewers in the quiet rhythm of Bantayan’s Barangay Tuyom. It captures fishermen returning from the sea, families gathered along the shore, and the spirit of a community shaped by the ocean’s moods. In Vestil’s signature style, the work feels both intimate and expansive. To anyone who stood before it while it still hung inside Melon Atelier, it felt like a visual poem to the Visayan coast and its people.
Carcar’s pride
It’s a continuation of the journey he began as a young artist from Carcar, a town known for producing painters of great sensitivity and discipline. When SunStar Cebu first featured Vestil in 2023, he was already carving his own place among local masters like Facundo Tallo and Manoy Mulong, who shaped his early understanding of realism and storytelling through art. But while those lessons remain visible in his technical precision, “Tales of the Tide” reflects a more contemplative and conceptual side of the artist—one that seeks not only to depict life, but to preserve it.
Story of Melon Atelier
This philosophy extends into his tattoo practice. After spending four years as a tattoo artist in a luxury studio in Switzerland, Vestil returned home to his wife, Rizza, and founded Melon Atelier. It is located at G2 Plaza Building, Camagayan, Perrelos, Carcar City.
“It was actually random,” Rizza shared in an online interview with SunStar Lifestyle on Oct. 6 as she explained the backstory of the studio’s name.
“His best friend, who’s also an artist in Switzerland, used to jokingly call him ‘Waltermelon.’ Since he was in Europe at the time, he used the word atelier instead of ‘studio’ to balance out the name, so it became Melon Atelier.”
At Melon Atelier, oil paintings hang side by side with tattoo designs, creating a space where ink and paint coexist naturally. Vestil is no stranger to small canvases — skin tells stories too, just in different formats. Married in August 2023, he and Rizza have turned their creative partnership into both a business and a philosophy of shared artistry.
Once celebrated for his realistic compositions, Vestil has since delved into deeper themes of culture, memory, and belonging. His participation in international exhibitions, including Paris’ Carrousel du Louvre in 2023, broadened his vision, yet his heart remains anchored in Cebu.